John Barry: An American Hero in the Age of Sail [Hardcover]

I have just finished reading this book, and although I have never written a book review before I feel compelled to write a few lines of praise about "JOHN BARRY: An American Hero in the Age of Sail". The history of the American Navy at sea during the Revolutionary War is a subject I know little about, except for, of course, John Paul Jones. This book is very well researched by Tim McGrath; it may be his first book but I hope it is not his last. The writing is superb and the descriptive naratives of raging storms at sea as well as numerous sea battles engaged in by Barry are [honest to God] suspenseful and literally kept me on the edge of my seat. [Historical biographies do not normally affect me in this fashion.] The fact that the first sea battle, as well as the last, of the Revolutionary War at sea was won by an American Navy vessel captained by John Barry says much about this unknown hero. However, Barry was very well known, in his day, for his sailing and fighting prowess and, in fact, was appointed by President George Washington as the first commissioned officer in the new United States Navy.

This book raises the question, "Who was the Father of the American Navy?" It also tells us something about the American Navy and its development in turbulent times. The biography makes a strong case for the proposition that Commodore John Barry was indeed "The Father of the American Navy."

The strength of this book is its extensive detail of the life of a little known hero of the American Revolution. The book also offers great detail on the ships of wood, the men of iron who manned them, and the tin men who often decided their fates based on political favoritism.

The reader follows Barry from the time that he left Wexford, Ireland as a cabin boy and worked his way up to captain of a merchant ship owned by Robert Morris, a Philadelphia businessman who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. During the Revolution, Barry not only commanded fighting ships, but also he was responsible for rigging many of the merchant ships that were being converted to combat vessels. At one point, Barry even fought on the ground, with Washington's army at Princeton. After the Revolution, Barry divided his time between a commercial venture to China, and continued efforts to promote a full-time American Navy. In this latter effort, Barry trained and selected for promotion a number of young naval officers, who later became the admirals who were the core of the full-time navy.

The reader cannot help but learn a great deal about the history of naval operations during the American Revolution, the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation, and the intricacies of commerce with China. On the other hand, one gets the sense that the author tries too hard to paint John Paul Jones as a self-promoter. There is no question but that Jones was enamored of his own exploits, but there is no need to keep repeating that fact. It becomes distracting. Also somewhat distracting were some over-reaching descriptions of some of the buildings in 18th Century Philadelphia as "palatial." Moreover, as one who knows a bit about Philadelphia, I was confused about some of the locations described in the book. For example, Barry's house was said to be at 186 Chestnut Street, but reference was often made to it being at "10th & Chestnut Streets." Those locations are different. They are eight blocks apart.

It is an excellent book - and the author makes his point; John Barry is the Father of the American Navy.

Tim McGrath's new take on the life and times of early Naval hero, John Barry is an exciting venture into the bygone days of wooden ships and iron men in the formative period of American Naval history. His subject is of particular interest to me, as I am a collateral descendant of Commodore Barry and have read almost all the out of print portrayals of this great and good man. The reason I praise this biography is for its crisp, action packed, colorful and detailed narrative that puts you back into a critical juncture in America's past and brings to life both well known and not so known personalities we need to know. His command of the subject matter is assured, although there are a few, and precious few, historical errors which will be corrected in the second edition. For example, the last officer who served under John Barry was not James Barron but Rear Admiral Charles Stewart who outlived Barry by 66 years dying in 1869. The President's House in Philadelphia was on 6th not 8th St on Market Street. All in all, I found the story well told, especially the gripping naval battles, with the reader right at Barry's side. If you are looking for great insight into 18th Century America as seen from John Barry's quarterdeck then this is a good place to start. Well researched, with good documentation and supporting bibliography, Tim McGrath has reanimated a lively American hero who deserves to be better known. .